Guy Ritchie films with Robert Downey, Jr.

[Hikari]

I really want to rewatch the first two movies when I get a chance.  I think I was too new to the Holmesian universe when I saw them the first time to really appreciate these.  I like the idea of a Sherlock that is a bit of a brawler and a bit of a mess; it's one way of seeing the character among many interpretations.  And, I remember thinking that the "shoot the wall" scene, where RDJ is just sitting there in a pile of paperwork and detritus and pistol smoke, looking dejected and half out of his mind with the boredom of it all, is one of the finest interpretations of that scene ever done.

 

I was dragged to the theatre in 2009 to see 'Sherlock Holmes' by a friend of mine, and my expectations were very low, with squatty, middle-aged American RDJ in the title role, recycling his 'Chaplin' accent.  Robert was justifiably nominated as a 27-year-old for 'Chaplin' in 1992, but I think we can all agree that it is profoundly unlikely that Holmes, a son of country squires who attended Oxford and who is undeniably a gentleman (when he chooses) would sound like a dead ringer for Chas. Chaplin, unless he were purposely donning a Cockney disguise.  The casting of Jude Law as Dr. Watson seemed a bit closer to the mark, albeit Jude is normally a headliner himself, not a second banana type.

 

Sherlock Holmes, the good:

the gypsy/Celtic infused score by Hans Zimmer

the bare-knuckle boxing scene, set to 'The Rocky Road to Dublin' by the Dubliners . . and the slo-mo 'deduction' sequence that is probably the highlight of that film

domestic squabbling between Holmes & Watson, over waistcoats and how many times Holmes kills Gladstone, the bulldog

Sherlock's Bohemian wardrobe

RDJ's facility for physical business & quick-change disguise artistry, harkening back to Chaplin

Jude Law's long-suffering Watson.  His casting for this part would not have leapt to my mind as a first pick, owing to his leading man status and the fact that at 6' Jude is several inches taller than his Holmes, but I thought he brought a perfect mix of steadiness & exasperation to the part.  Plausible as 'action man' Watson, soldier-medico.  Plausible as a romantic type appealing to the ladies (the on-set PAs had a nickname for Jude:  Hotson) . . facility for comedy timing and he was not overmanned by his mustache.  He wore it rather than the other way 'round.  And it appeared to be a completely natural part of his face, furthermore.

 

the bad:

the whole plot, pretty much.  Dark as hell.  I don't go in for satanic stuff and this whole thing strained credulity.  Made Jack the Ripper look quite wholesome.

Way too much CGI.  Strained the eyes.  And the palette was mostly unvarying shades of black or grey with the occasional muddy brown to lighten things up a bit.

Rachel McAdams as Irene Adler.  I like McAdams usually.  Here, less.  She lacks the sophistication and elegance that would belong to one of the world's leading divas of the stage.  Canadian Rach makes Adler more than plausible as a native of New Jersey, but I think Adler would sound a bit more Continental myself, and perhaps, be taller.  She and RDJ have an impish chemistry together but when they are onscreen, it's a bit akin to two kids running amok in Great-granddaddy's Victorian closet . . kind of a 'Sherlock, Jr.' madcap matinee feeling.  Less 'bad' than . . neutral.

Kelly Reilly as Mary Morstan.  Reilly is an attractive woman.  Then she speaks and the effect is somewhat spoiled.  Yes, it's her voice that annoys me.  Rather high and girlish and breathy.  I prefer to think of Mrs. Watson possessing a soft, low voice 'a most excellent thing in woman'.

 

*****************

 

I liked the sequel much better overall.  It had more of the parts about the first one I really enjoyed (matey camaraderie/bickering/more of RDJ and Law being good at their respective strengths/a great villain in Jared Harris) . . and less of that which I didn't enjoy so much . . less Adler, less Mary, more judicious CGI, a more winning storyline all around . . no satanic garbage . .and one of the great showdowns of two great minds of all time, imaginatively rendered by Mr. Ritchie as even more exciting and plausible than the showdown Conan Doyle gave us in The Final Problem.  And Stephen Fry as Mycroft.

 

Accordingly, I took a pass on the first but invested in the second DVD.  Guy Ritchie is not a Holmes dilettante, amazingly enough, but a serious Sherlockian.  His take on Holmes is decidedly more of a bad-boy romp than a more staid traditionally Victorian rendering but that's why I like it.  He emphasizes features of SH which are hinted at all over the Canon but rarely ever portrayed onscreen--his Bohemian leanings, the bare-knuckle fighter, the baritsu master, and his impishness at disguises.  I'm quite looking forward to #3.  RDJ will be 53 on his next birthday but he's got the vitality of a guy 15 years younger and is it kick butt shape.  This youthfulness and energy is eminently Holmes-suitable, even if his physical package isn't the traditional Holmes.

[Hikari]

I must re-watch the first two movies as I’ve only seen them once each. I remember mentally filing them under ‘enjoyable romp’ but I think that another viewing is in order.

 

I wish that someone would make a ‘proper’ Holmes movie though. A few months ago I watched a movie called Sherlock Holmes and The Shadow Watchers directed by someone called Anthony Mann. It was appalling! It was made even worse by the director taking the lead role. He was quite chubby and totally unsuited to the role. Perhaps no one would be keen due to the Guy Ritchie movies.

 

Herlock,

 

I think rewatching Guy Ritchie's Holmes movies qualifies as a great holiday viewing project.  You can eat some roast goose while you're at it and pretend that Mrs. Hudson made it.

 

Geraldine James as Mrs. Hudson was not the grandmotherly sort most of us probably picture for Holmes's landlady.  She was a bit too high-strung/worrywart, methought.  She railed a lot at Holmes, both to his face but mostly complaining via Watson . . and we know that Holmes could be a most exasperating (and destructive) tenant.  But James was too brittle and uptight--what's missing is the deep affection Mrs. Hudson has for Holmes, and the bemusement she regarded most of his shenanigans, with the eye of an indulgent auntie.  Had she not done so, Holmes would have surely been evicted.  Discharging a firearm indoors at the wall would have done it for me had I been in her shoes.  Dangerous and irresponsible, that.

 

See my comments above.  If you think the first one gets tedious as well as increasingly implausible, as do I, you could do what I do--watch all the best bits:  SH deducing how best to really hurt a guy who spits at the back of his head; Holmes being a b*tt-head to Watson's new fiancée; Watson and Holmes arguing in a carriage over who borrows whose clothes without asking; Holmes getting punched in the face by an irate Watson for insulting the character of Miss Morstan (I am a pacifist by nature.  So why am I so delighted when Holmes gets punched in the face by his best friend?  Doesn't matter the era . . it makes me smile.) . . . Holmes and Watson in the holding tank at the jail (more a yard, really) . . .RDJ crawling through the detritus on his floor saying 'My mind rebels at stagnation; give me problems, give me work' . . some saucy quick change disguises . . and roll end credits!

 

You could make up the time by watching 'Game of Shadows' twice.  I always do.  :)

[HerlockSholmes]

I might just watch the Russian Holmes series again. Haven’t seen it for a while. I must also rewatch Sherlock as my knowledge of the series is far lower than everyone else on here. I’m pretty good on Holmes tv and movies but weaker on the newer stuff. My ‘brain attic’ is pretty congested with trivial stuff that no one else is interested in. Perhaps I need to delete?

[Hikari]

I might just watch the Russian Holmes series again. Haven’t seen it for a while. I must also rewatch Sherlock as my knowledge of the series is far lower than everyone else on here. I’m pretty good on Holmes tv and movies but weaker on the newer stuff. My ‘brain attic’ is pretty congested with trivial stuff that no one else is interested in. Perhaps I need to delete?

 

Perhaps you could clean out the brain attic by writing a book first so that the rest of us can derive benefit from your knowledge.

 

I thought Rupert Everett's turn in The Case of the Silk Stocking was a fairly proper Sherlock Holmes movie, although it was 'only' for TV.  Pity there weren't more with this duo.

 

Have you watched a TV mini-series from circa 2000 called 'Murder Rooms'?  The late Sir Ian Richardson stars as Dr. Joseph Bell in very Sherlock-y form and as his 'Watson', Charles Edwards, here called Dr. Arthur Conan Doyle.  Not as high budget a program as Silk Stocking but I thought it was pretty interesting.  Dr. Bell was a fascinating man . .  and quite handsome, too.  There's a picture of him in a deerstalker and Inverness cape, looking every inch the Great Detective in his later years.

[HerlockSholmes]

 

 

I might just watch the Russian Holmes series again. Haven’t seen it for a while. I must also rewatch Sherlock as my knowledge of the series is far lower than everyone else on here. I’m pretty good on Holmes tv and movies but weaker on the newer stuff. My ‘brain attic’ is pretty congested with trivial stuff that no one else is interested in. Perhaps I need to delete?

Perhaps you could clean out the brain attic by writing a book first so that the rest of us can derive benefit from your knowledge.

 

I thought Rupert Everett's turn in The Case of the Silk Stocking was a fairly proper Sherlock Holmes movie, although it was 'only' for TV. Pity there weren't more with this duo.

 

Have you watched a TV mini-series from circa 2000 called 'Murder Rooms'? The late Sir Ian Richardson stars as Dr. Joseph Bell in very Sherlock-y form and as his 'Watson', Charles Edwards, here called Dr. Arthur Conan Doyle. Not as high budget a program as Silk Stocking but I thought it was pretty interesting. Dr. Bell was a fascinating man . . and quite handsome, too. There's a picture of him in a deerstalker and Inverness cape, looking every inch the Great Detective in his later years.

I liked Everett as Holmes. A pity that he didn’t do another one.

 

Murder Rooms is a favourite of mine. I saw it on tv years ago then got the dvd set (no surprise there). I think Ian Richardson made a pretty decent Holmes in 2 movies too

[Artemis]

I thought Rupert Everett's turn in The Case of the Silk Stocking was a fairly proper Sherlock Holmes movie, although it was 'only' for TV. Pity there weren't more with this duo.

 

Have you watched a TV mini-series from circa 2000 called 'Murder Rooms'? The late Sir Ian Richardson stars as Dr. Joseph Bell in very Sherlock-y form and as his 'Watson', Charles Edwards, here called Dr. Arthur Conan Doyle.

I've never heard of either of those before now; they sound interesting! I'm going to have to see if I can find them available anywhere for watching.

 

I agree with most of your review of the Guy Ritchie films. I liked the second one better, for many of the same reasons, although I didn't particularly mind the plot of the first. Victorian-era people were very superstitious, interested in the occult and all things supernatural, so I thought it still fit nicely within the realm of Sherlock Holmes. (And I don't normally mind that kind of material anyway, as long as it's not taken to an extreme.)

 

And unlike you, I actually really like this Mary. She seems kind and strong without being a superwoman, and I think just enough focus is placed on her. But her voice doesn't grate on me, either.

 

Irene's voice does though, as well as her whole character: The typical unscrupulous femme fatale superwoman that is so overplayed these days, and so, so boring.

 

I admit I was relieved when she "died" early on in the second film. I really hope she stays dead for film 3.

 

 

Jude Law's Watson, as I've said before, is one of my very favorites -- for all the reasons you listed, and then some. I just love a capable, man-at-arms Watson, and one who doesn't just kowtow to Holmes' "superior genius" and BS, lol.

 

Alright, now I'm gonna have to go watch them again too, lol.

[Hikari]

 

I thought Rupert Everett's turn in The Case of the Silk Stocking was a fairly proper Sherlock Holmes movie, although it was 'only' for TV. Pity there weren't more with this duo.

 

Have you watched a TV mini-series from circa 2000 called 'Murder Rooms'? The late Sir Ian Richardson stars as Dr. Joseph Bell in very Sherlock-y form and as his 'Watson', Charles Edwards, here called Dr. Arthur Conan Doyle.

I've never heard of either of those before now; they sound interesting! I'm going to have to see if I can find them available anywhere for watching.

 

I agree with most of your review of the Guy Ritchie films. I liked the second one better, for many of the same reasons, although I didn't particularly mind the plot of the first. Victorian-era people were very superstitious, interested in the occult and all things supernatural, so I thought it still fit nicely within the realm of Sherlock Holmes. (And I don't normally mind that kind of material anyway, as long as it's not taken to an extreme.)

 

And unlike you, I actually really like this Mary. She seems kind and strong without being a superwoman, and I think just enough focus is placed on her. But her voice doesn't grate on me, either.

 

Irene's voice does though, as well as her whole character: The typical unscrupulous femme fatale superwoman that is so overplayed these days, and so, so boring.

 

I admit I was relieved when she "died" early on in the second film. I really hope she stays dead for film 3.

 

 

Jude Law's Watson, as I've said before, is one of my very favorites -- for all the reasons you listed, and then some. I just love a capable, man-at-arms Watson, and one who doesn't just kowtow to Holmes' "superior genius" and BS, lol.

 

Alright, now I'm gonna have to go watch them again too, lol.

 

 

I was a bit hard on Kelly Reilly, I suppose.  Actually she shows herself to be quite a good sport in the second film.  She and Jude make an attractive couple.  I admired her for her fortitude in the face of having her nuptials nearly derailed when Sherlock Holmes delivered her groom to the church in a deplorable condition,  being thrown off a train, and perhaps most scary of all, confronting Mycroft Holmes in the altogether.

 

The choice they made with the Woman was unexpected, to say the least.  Guess Rach was unavailable for a third film.  Making the Woman a minx in cahoots with the Professor really does a disservice to her; she never met him and only wanted to protect herself, not be Harley Quinn to Moriarty's Joker.

 

 I really liked this Moriarty.  Jared Harris (son of the late, great Richard) does not resemble at all ACD's description of SH's nemesis as we have seen portrayed a lot elsewhere.  Jared looks soft and nonthreatening, like a bunny rabbit.  But this bunny's fangs are lethal.  The final showdown scene featuring slo-mo deductions in the mind palace are the highlight of this movie for me, as the other setpiece was in the first film.

 

Someone on the other page didn't care for Jude Law as Watson.  Wonder why because I think he's pitch perfect.  His voiceover narration of 'the best and wisest man' speech gets me every time . . .and I've seen this movie 4, 5 times now at least.

 

And, just two words:  urban camouflage!  LOL

[HerlockSholmes]

 

 

 

I thought Rupert Everett's turn in The Case of the Silk Stocking was a fairly proper Sherlock Holmes movie, although it was 'only' for TV. Pity there weren't more with this duo.

 

Have you watched a TV mini-series from circa 2000 called 'Murder Rooms'? The late Sir Ian Richardson stars as Dr. Joseph Bell in very Sherlock-y form and as his 'Watson', Charles Edwards, here called Dr. Arthur Conan Doyle.

I've never heard of either of those before now; they sound interesting! I'm going to have to see if I can find them available anywhere for watching.

 

I agree with most of your review of the Guy Ritchie films. I liked the second one better, for many of the same reasons, although I didn't particularly mind the plot of the first. Victorian-era people were very superstitious, interested in the occult and all things supernatural, so I thought it still fit nicely within the realm of Sherlock Holmes. (And I don't normally mind that kind of material anyway, as long as it's not taken to an extreme.)

 

And unlike you, I actually really like this Mary. She seems kind and strong without being a superwoman, and I think just enough focus is placed on her. But her voice doesn't grate on me, either.

 

Irene's voice does though, as well as her whole character: The typical unscrupulous femme fatale superwoman that is so overplayed these days, and so, so boring.

 

I admit I was relieved when she "died" early on in the second film. I really hope she stays dead for film 3.

 

 

Jude Law's Watson, as I've said before, is one of my very favorites -- for all the reasons you listed, and then some. I just love a capable, man-at-arms Watson, and one who doesn't just kowtow to Holmes' "superior genius" and BS, lol.

 

Alright, now I'm gonna have to go watch them again too, lol.

I was a bit hard on Kelly Reilly, I suppose. Actually she shows herself to be quite a good sport in the second film. She and Jude make an attractive couple. I admired her for her fortitude in the face of having her nuptials nearly derailed when Sherlock Holmes delivered her groom to the church in a deplorable condition, being thrown off a train, and perhaps most scary of all, confronting Mycroft Holmes in the altogether.

 

The choice they made with the Woman was unexpected, to say the least. Guess Rach was unavailable for a third film. Making the Woman a minx in cahoots with the Professor really does a disservice to her; she never met him and only wanted to protect herself, not be Harley Quinn to Moriarty's Joker.

 

I really liked this Moriarty. Jared Harris (son of the late, great Richard) does not resemble at all ACD's description of SH's nemesis as we have seen portrayed a lot elsewhere. Jared looks soft and nonthreatening, like a bunny rabbit. But this bunny's fangs are lethal. The final showdown scene featuring slo-mo deductions in the mind palace are the highlight of this movie for me, as the other setpiece was in the first film.

 

Someone on the other page didn't care for Jude Law as Watson. Wonder why because I think he's pitch perfect. His voiceover narration of 'the best and wisest man' speech gets me every time . . .and I've seen this movie 4, 5 times now at least.

 

And, just two words: urban camouflage! LOL

By the way Hikari, changing the subject here, I actually ‘knew’ George Mann I don’t ‘know’ him now. George used to be an assistant manager in my local bookshop (even though he’s from the north-east). I used to read Sci-if and fantasy when I was younger then got into True crime, Sherlock Holmes and History so I had a lot of books taking up too much space. George told me that he was writing or editing a Sci-if encyclopaedia and so offered to by the books from me, which he did (very cheaply I hasten to add

[Hikari]

Thanks for the intel on the SHSoL, Herlock.

 

I shall now know not to be overly impressed when I read that in somebody's bio.  :)  Sounds a bit like joining the YMCA . . yer pays yer money and they let anybody in!  I thought you had to like, earn your place like BSIs, only more democratic, like.  (Do  you have the YMCA in England?)

 

Membership in the BSIs is held up like some kind of Holy Grail for Sherlockian enlightenment, but the further I go on, the more they sound like a bunch of pompous tossers to me.  An uber-clique for those who suck up to the Right People in the Right Ways (cf. the Klingons--my pet epithet for King and Klinger, forsooth)

 

$31 per annum is cheap, innit bruv? 

 

I sent David Marcum a Christmas e-card of my own design.  Not surprisingly, I was unable to find anything suitable for Christmas featuring our Conan Doyle pair, though the Internet is virtually awash with homages to Cumberbatch & Freeman.  The one I made shows LEGO Sherlock and LEGO Watson by their LEGO fireside in LEGO 221b.  Hey, I work with kids; it's a job, and LEGO is all the rage.  Will send it to you.

 

Re. George Mann  . . .knew, know . . .the important thing is you met, you talked, you made a connection.  You should try tracking him down and reintroducing yourself as the kid from whom he used to buy all those sci-fi books--he'd probably remember you.  Seems he's become a Sherlockian specialist in the interim.  He's kind of busy with his own projects now and I don't recall him being a contributor to any of David's volumes, but he may have one in this latest batch, now that I think about it.  Must look that up at home.  It was kind of late last night when I tore into those and I was a bit punchy.

[Hikari]

Well, I'm fresh from the Society's webpage.  It appears that a full adult membership is actually US$62.00.  You were only off by 100%  :) 

Just goes to show that the pound sterling is a bit stronger than the dollar, innit, bruv?  (Is it?  Who can tell these things?)

 

I suppose family obligations will prevent you from attending the annual dinner on Holmes's birthday.  There are still a few spots available.  For the bargain price of 88 pounds (that's $176 in colonial dollars, alcohol non-inclusive), you can sit in the House of Commons dining room and listen to the Rt. Honorable Lord West, retired admiral of Her Majesty's navy talk about  . . his service in the Falklands . .?  The Naval Treaty aside, why would you want to?  Sherlock connection is . .?  Between you and me, I think David Marcum would be more entertaining and he'd be thrilled to be invited to London again.  He is a member. (Naturellement.)

 

Get a load of the menu, though:  The theme for the evening is 'The Stormy Petrel Supper'!!  Stormy petrels are not on the menu, however.  It includes soused mackerel (ha!) and baked duck and Plum 'Paris Brest' Choux pastry, whatever that may be. 

 

The Morning After event, lunch at the Centre Page, a pub in Knightrider Street seems a bit less stiff, though there's still a lot of very hearty food on offer.  Sherlock Holmes didn't eat much, but his disciples sure like their food!

[HerlockSholmes]

You’re right Hikari, I won’t be going. Maybe one day I’ll go to one?

 

Just thought that I’d post this in case anyone’s interested. I don’t bother with downloaded stuff myself but this might be good.

 

https://www.bigfinish.com/news/v/the-adventure-of-the-fleet-street-transparency

[Hikari]

Seeing as this is an active discussion on the 'Other Formats' thread, this goes here!

 

Merry Christmas!

MCfromSH17.pdf

[Hikari]

P.S. to Artemis and Herlock:

 

True story:  I was lying awake last night and what sprung to my mind?  (no, not 8 reindeer)  . . . but rather this horrifying thought--

 

I had COMPLETELY OVERLOOKED the versatile Eddie Marsan as Inspector Lestrade when I was listing the virtues of Guy Ritchie's Sherlock films.  How did that happen? 

 

I claim pre-Christmas induced stress amnesia.  Or else it's early-onset dementia.  Merry effin' Christmas to me!

 

Seriously, though, what an oversight.  The first time through, Eddie's take on Lestrade put me off because it seemed so bitter and nasty.  We know that Lestrade is both competitive with Holmes and also aggrieved at times when he feels himself overshadowed by his consultant (something which happens with fearful regularity.)  Occasionally he and Holmes will get into a sniping match and Lestrade always comes out the worse for it.  For the longest time (before I read the Canon properly), I swallowed at face value the popular conception that Lestrade, the lesser man, hates Sherlock Holmes and is forced to work with him against his will because Holmes is just so much better than the whole of Scotland Yard put together.

 

While this last bit may be true . . . Lestrade actually *admires* Holmes as much as he is irritated by him.  The admiration must win out slightly because Lestrade keeps coming back to consult with Holmes--dropping by into 221b on his own initiative.  He grumbles to be bested time and again by Holmes, but he puts his duty--solving heinous crimes--far above his own vanity.  He keeps coming back to the trough for more abuse because Sherlock Holmes gets results--and that is best for the citizens of London, if not always for G. Lestrade personally.  There is respect, and more--a prickly affection for Holmes, irritant though he is.  There is a hole in Lestrade's life and many of his colleagues' at the Yard when SH Goes Away for three years.  Praise from Sherlock Holmes is, though a rare occurrence, forthcoming enough to suggest that the prickly affection goes both ways.  Holmes can't commend the Inspector for his overwhelming intellect,  but he does praise Lestrade's dedication to duty, his doggedness in sticking with a case no matter what and his personal courage.  SH anoints him as 'one of the best of the Yarders' . . (shared with Inspector Gregson and maybe Hopkins) . . but Lestrade consults with Holmes more than any other detective.  Some of my favorite pastiches expand this vaguely collegial relationship, sporadic though it is, into a real regard.  There's one where Lestrade gets shot and is critically wounded, and Holmes is almost as distraught as when Watson gets shot.

 

These two guys care about one another in a sometimes grudging fashion, but being Victorian males would sooner remove their own fingernails with rusty pliers than lapse into any sticky pronouncements of such.  Eddie's Lestrade leans too much on the 'bitter buffoon' schtick, but as a physical representation of the character, Eddie's super.

 

Lestrade (to Holmes):  In another life, you'd have made an excellent criminal.

Holmes:  Yes, and you, sir, an excellent policeman.

 

The best Lestrade is, of course, Mr. Colin Jeavons of the Granada Sherlock Holmes series.  He touches all the bases.  But Eddie is my #2.

 

[Arcadia]

Seeing as this is an active discussion on the 'Other Formats' thread, this goes here!

 

Merry Christmas!

 

Awesome! Merry Christmas, Hikari!

[Artemis]

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Artemis]

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Artemis]

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Artemis]

 

 

 

Edit: I've noticed that this is my 1500th post, so I thought I'd leave a little note here to commemorate the occasion. 

 

 

 

[Arcadia]

Every time I see stuff like that I swear I'm going to watch these movies again. Then one of them comes on TV and I never do.

[Artemis]

I'm going to watch both tomorrow. Ringing in the new year with some Sherlock Holmes!

[Artemis]

[Hikari]

 

It's hard not to love these boys.

 

Can you post the scene where Watson punches Holmes in the face for insulting his fiancée?  I love that one.

 

[Artemis]

I’ll see if I can find it. There aren’t nearly as many pictures of RDJ Holmes floating around the internet as BBC Sherlock.

[Artemis]

Here’s a video of it.

 

[Hikari]

Thanks, Artemis!

 

That's some first-rate bickering right there.  No brothers could do it better.

 

SH:  You have the grand gift of silence, Watson.  It makes you invaluable as a companion.

JW:  (Pow!! Sherlock Holmes gets it in the nose.)  I knew she'd been engaged.  She'd told me.

SH:  That's 'no' to the opera, then.

 

******************

 

Sherlock Holmes is an infuriating companion.  He would test the patience of Jesus Christ.  Watson isn't quite that saintly, but he's close.  I heartily approve this punch because SH had it coming.